TIGHT RACES FOR TOP SPOTS IN OFFENSIVE CATEGORIES IN FINAL WEEK OF CFL REGULAR SEASON

Leading the way in three categories each are players from the Calgary Stampeders and the Edmonton Eskimos, while BC Lions stars top the league in one major offensive stat category.

Edmonton pivot Mike Reilly leads all CFL quarterbacks in passing yards this season with 5,554 yards, followed closely by Calgary’s Bo Levi Mitchell (5,385) and BC’s Jonathon Jennings (4,919).  

The same three quarterbacks currently lead the league in passing touchdowns, but Mitchell (32) leads Reilly (28) by four majors, while Jennings has a total of 24. All three players are also their respective team’s nominee for this season’s Most Outstanding Player Award, which will be awarded at the Shaw CFL Awards during Grey Cup Week in Toronto later this month.

Jonathon Jennings needs only 81 passing yards to surpass 5,000 passing yards and join Mike Reilly (5,554) and Bo Levi Mitchell (5,385). The last time the league saw three 5,000-yard passers was in 2008 with Anthony Calvillo (5,633), Ricky Ray (5,633) and Henry Burris (5,094).

Two Canadian running backs are currently battling for the season rushing crown. Calgary’s Jerome Messam (1,198) and Blue Bomber Andrew Harris (914) are one and two respectively, while Brandon Whitaker (892) from the Toronto Argonauts sits in third heading into the final weekend of the season; Harris and Whitaker have the opportunity to collect more rushing yards to jostle for position. Both Messam and Harris are nominees for Most Outstanding Canadian this season, while Whitaker is Toronto’s nominee for Most Outstanding Player.

Edmonton’s Mike Reilly is also near the top of the pack for rushing touchdowns with nine, trailing Calgary’s 2016 Most Outstanding Canadian nominee Jerome Messam who has rushed for 11 majors.

A pair of receivers from the nation’s capital, Chris Williams and Ernest Jackson, both have 10 receiving touchdowns each and trail Lions receiver Emmanuel Arceneaux, who tops the league with 11 majors in the air. 

Here is a full list of the CFL’s league leaders in seven key offensive categories:

Passing Yards:

1. Mike Reilly, EDM (5,554)
2. Bo Levi Mitchell, CGY (5,385)
3. Jonathon Jennings, BC (4,919)

Passing TDs:

1. Bo Levi Mitchell, CGY 32
2. Mike Reilly, EDM 28
3. Jonathon Jennings, BC 24

Rushing Yards:

1. Jerome Messam, CGY (1, 198)
2. Andrew Harris, WPG (914)
3. Brandon Whitaker, TOR (892)

Rushing TDs:

1. Jerome Messam, CGY 11
2. Mike Reilly, EDM 9
3. John White, EDM 8
4. Andrew Buckley, CGY 8

Receiving Yards:

1. Adarius Bowman, EDM (1,761)
2. Derel Walker, EDM (1,589)
3. Emmanuel Arceneaux, BC (1,386)

Receiving TDs:

1. Emmanuel Arceneaux, BC 11
2. Chris Williams, OTT 10
3. Ernest Jackson, OTT 10
4. Derel Walker, EDM 10

Receptions:

1. Adarius Bowman, EDM 120
2. Derel Walker, EDM 109
3. Andy Fantuz, HAM 101

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers clash with the Ottawa REDBLACKS in front of another sold-out crowd in the nation’s capital on Friday Night Football, and a rare CFL triple-header on Saturday caps off Week 20. Montreal visits Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton in front of what will likely be a capacity crowd, Toronto will make a trip west to Edmonton, and Saskatchewan and BC will close the 2016 CFL regular season campaign in front of one of the largest crowds this season at BC Place. 

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